The official Road to the Kentucky Derby will begin Saturday as Churchill Downs stages the 45th running of the GIII Iroquois S. for 2-year-olds at one mile on opening weekend of its 14-day September Meet.The Road to the Kentucky Derby, which debuted in 2013, annually awards a sliding scale of points to the top five finishing positions in select qualifying races. At the conclusion of the series, the leaderboard will determine the preference list for entries into the 20-horse Kentucky Derby.The 153rd running of the $5-million Kentucky Derby is scheduled for Saturday, May 1, 2027.Up to three spots in the starting gate may be reserved for international participants. In addition to the primary Road to the Kentucky Derby series, there are two separate series that carve out potential spots for international horses from Japan, Europe and the United Arab Emirates.The stand-alone Euro/Mideast Road to the Kentucky Derby series, which concludes with the G2 UAE Derby, can produce up to two invitations to the top point-earners, while the Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby can yield one runner.For the complete schedule, click here.The post Road to the Kentucky Derby Begins with Saturday’s Iroquois appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.